Having the right personality is undoubtedly one of the most important, unspoken requirements for any modern leader, from politicians to corporate executives. CEOs or chief executive officers are under immense pressure every single day, as they are responsible for putting the flagship operations of their company in motion, as well as manage some of the day-to-day affairs in and out of the office.
Business continuity experts from Continuity2.com are particularly adamant about the ability to handle major disasters as one of the most desirable traits in any CEO. This is a multilayered skill and ranges from on-the-spot strategizing, crisis man-management, and the ability to make difficult decisions that many people within the company might be unhappy with.
Aside from crisis management, a good CEO needs to have the right amount of vision, motivation, and expertise to be able to successfully continue to grow their companies. Paradoxically, chief executive officers of businesses that are already at the top of their game have it much harder than those who run smaller corporations, as their room for growth and development is hindered by the fact that the company has already seemingly achieved everything there is to achieve.
Do you think you have what it takes to be a successful CEO? Does your personality meet the requirements above? Continue reading this article to see what personality type is most successful at running large businesses.
The Myers Briggs Personality Tests
The Myers-Briggs type indicator (MBTI) has been used for many years across various industries, to determine employees' potential to their companies, as well as the right career paths for individuals. Overall, the MBTI assumes that there are sixteen different personality types.
These personality types are broken down into four categories:
-
- Extraversion (E) and Introversion (I)
-
- Sensing (S) and Intuition (N)
-
- Thinking (T) and Feeling (F)
-
- Judging (J) or Perceiving (P)
Each letter in the final combination of letters in a personality type stands for a specific trait. For instance, a person may have a personality type of ESFP. In this example, the E indicates Extraverted, S designates Sensing, and P indicates Perceiving.
The first letter represents if the individual is more extroverted than introverted, the second one indicates if they are more sensing than intuitive, the third letter projects the individual's tendency to be more thinking or feeling, and the fourth and final letter indicates if a person is more judging or perceiving. The result of any combination of these characteristics can determine one's personality type.
The CEO Personality Type
Out of all of these personality types, which one makes for a natural CEO? According to the data gathered by researchers, the ENTJ types are more naturally inclined to these positions of leadership. This is because they are high in extroversion and goal-oriented thinking. These personality types are also common among leaders in the military, leading them to achieve the ranks of general pretty fast. ENTJs also rely on their intuition and don't give in to emotions too often, which is a crucial ability to have for any aspiring leader. A lot of people make unnecessary mistakes because they are being driven by their emotions. If they were more logical in the decision-making process, they could stop making costly mistakes that cost the company money and hurt its reputation. Being able to think of both short and long-term goals also helps ENTJs in this regard.
Even though ENTJs don't overly focus on feelings, they still have a keen sense of others' feelings and consider them when it comes time to make important decisions. That ability comes with the dominance of the Judgement (J) trait. Thanks to this characteristic, they can evaluate situations accurately, and come to the most effective conclusion that is beneficial for all involved parties. This is why ENTJs score high marks with people who work for them and are constantly voted as the best leaders in a variety of polls.
The Bottom Line
Just because you're not the ENTJ personality type, it doesn't mean that you cannot become an entrepreneur or a CEO of your own company. First of all, entrepreneurs don't need to be born-leaders. What matters is their ingenuity and ability to think in unconventional ways. Secondly, assuming a leadership role does not mean that you cannot make use of assistants and trusted confidants that will be there for you when things go awry and provide you with sound advice as to what course of action to take up next. Granted, you might not have too much luck when applying for an executive position with an inadequate personality type, but it shouldn't stop you from pursuing ownership of the decision-making process within your own company.
On the other hand, if you are an ENTJ and feel inclined to pursue a career in the corporate world, you might just turn out to make a fine CEO one day! Remember: personality types are useful indicators, but they do not completely determine who you are as a person. Take your scores into account, but don't let the MBTI stop you from pursuing your dreams!